Part 6: Cambodia’s Floating Villages

Part 1: When You Wake Up at 3 AM for a 6 AM Flight…
Part 2: Only 18 Hours to Go
Part 3: How to See Angkor Wat
Part 4: The Many Faces of Bayon
Part 5: Trees Galore!

There are a number of floating villages near Siem Reap located on the Tonle Sap Lake. Most tourists opt to visit Chong Khneas, the closest floating village to Siem Reap. In fact, that’s where our driver was going to take us when I said “floating village” until I showed him the map and pointed to Kampong Khleang. He told me it would cost extra and I nodded. I had done my research and Kampong Khleang was supposed to be worth the trip.

My research paid off. When we got there, there were barely any tourist boats on the water. The floating village was huge and we really had the lake to ourselves (plus our boat driver), allowing us to really appreciate what the lives of the local villagers are like.

It was an amazing experience. It’s hard to describe how different the floating village is from the lives we’re used to, hard to imagine that people actually live in the rickety huts perched precariously above the water on stilts. Hopefully, the pictures will do it justice.

Our trusty boat… and by trusty I mean the motor made some rather odd noises that did not sound quite right. But we managed to make it safely across the lake and back so no complaints!

Most people go to Siem Reap to see the Angkor temples, as well they should. But the Kampong Khleang floating village was an amazing experience and having the lake all to ourselves made it all the more amazing. If you travel across the globe to see the Angkor temples, take an extra day to squeeze in Kampong Khleang. It is worth it.